Kalamazoo / Michigan / United States
The Park Trades Center, located in downtown Kalamazoo Michigan, is a large creative community of artists, artisans, and entrepreneurs. Originally a manufacturing facility, this 140, 000 square foot building houses 95 studios and accommodates over 60 artists and artisans. They work in mediums ranging from glass, printmaking, papermaking, metalsmithing, welding, drawing, ceramics, sculpture, woodworking, and woodcarving to photography, painting, textiles, serigraphy and beadworking. The building also houses a number of small business entrepreneurs. Additionally, the Park Trades Center is home to the Saniwax Gallery and has an Artists Association, through which its resident artists collaborate and co-mingle ( see "Saniwax Gallery" page ). Studios may be leased throughout the year and are open to anyone with a creative spirit! For more information or to arrange an appointment to see available spaces, please visit the "Contact Us" page. Edison and Cure and Firestone worked in buildings like this: high windows, sturdy wood floors, wide stairwells, old-style elevators, all enclosed in a fortress of brickwork. Four floors of hallways lead to artists studios, artisans workshops, retail spaces, offices, and small entrepreneurial businesses within the interior of this historic manufacturing space.
